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Dhaka seeks UNHCR help over Rohingyas

Bangladesh has sought the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) support for repatriation of Myanmar’s Rohingya refugees.

Foreign Minister Abul Hasan Mahmood Ali asked the UNHCR Chief in Dhaka Stina Lgungdell on Thursday to work with Burma government to this end when she met him.

Ali pitched for their early repatriation as Bangladesh had been sheltering for decades thousands of Myanmar nationals who fled the Rakhine state.

The minister said Bangladesh remained confident in starting the repatriation process for them at an early date through bilateral negotiations with Myanmar.

He expressed his hope that the UNHCR would work with the international community in creating “a conducive condition” in Myanmar’s Rakhine State for their return.

Mahmood Ali also said Bangladesh’s relations with Myanmar had never been better and the present government was pursuing “pro-active and constructive diplomatic engagements” with Naypyidaw both bilaterally and multilaterally.

The minister appreciated the new UNHCR Chief’s performance since taking up her assignment in Dhaka last year.

He said Lgungdell brought a fresh impetus into UNHCR’s work in Bangladesh at the operational level.

The UNHCR official also commended Ali for introducing the Cash Voucher System during his previous stint as the Minister for Disaster Management and Relief in distributing food rations smoothly to the Myanmar refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar.

The minister thanked the UNHCR for providing continuous humanitarian support to the two refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar.